MReport September 2018

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TH E M R EP O RT
FEATURE
is about having tough conversa-
tions with your team, with execu-
tives, and with your customer.
My go-to line, especially in
our mortgage vertical is, "I have
questions." To successfully under-
stand my customer (in this case,
mortgage executives) I need to un-
derstand why things are the way
they are, what caused them insti-
tutionally and how we may come
to some sort of middle ground.
How can I bring something like
blockchain into the mortgage nar-
rative without spooking anyone?
This has proven to be a challenge!
At the beginning of my mort-
gage industry indoctrination, I
was surprised by how friendly
everyone was. They were eager to
share their many years of experi-
ence and try their best to explain
why things are the way they are.
Very different than the expecta-
tion established in my mind from
The Wolf of Wall Street—the "too big-
to-fail," recession-causing industry
reputation that many millennials
graduated into. Not only did I
have to change my perspective
that we were we going to disrupt
an entire industry, I have grown
to respect the many facets of the
mortgage industry. I did this by
intentionally asking questions,
finding multigenerational mentors,
and listening more than I talked.
In order to truly understand the
marketplace, we have had to listen
and adjust our plans for what the
market really needs. Turning a
blind eye, or not engaging in con-
versations with the intent to learn
from them, not just check a box,
will cause companies and whole
industries to fall behind.
Don't Be Driven by Fear
I
deally, companies aren't about
surviving. They're about thriv-
ing by way of moving forward,
and simply refusing to stagnate.
No one thinks they will get ahead
by remaining the same as they
always have. As the workforces
changes, so does the consumer.
With the adoption of cryptocur-
rency, nontraditional lending, and
on-demand commerce, consum-
ers are embracing applications of
evolving technology to meet every
need. From my point of view,
startups are able to move quickly
because they don't have as many
hoops to jump through and there
is less infrastructure in which
everyone wants a piece of the pie.
The mortgage industry must
embrace innovators, not ostracize
them, because we need each other
to understand and to move for
-
ward. You don't have to go as far
as Google where employees are
allowed 20 percent of their time
to work on side projects, though
this has brought about some of
the decades most innovative prod
-
ucts: Google Maps, Twitter, and
Slack. Take a field trip to a start
up, play some ping pong with
them. Start a book club that cre-
ates a safe space for conversations
about innovation. Get a company
Toastmasters Club going where
you can practice your speaking
skills and pitch world-changing
ideas.
Think of innovators as another
kind of diversity. Innovation is
inclusive, and considers many
viewpoints. Hiring traditionally
diverse teams doesn't matter much
if the team, company, or even
industry chooses the same path
forward. The point isn't to check
the 'innovative box' on your to-do
list. To truly embrace and become
innovative, your mindset is must
be one of curiosity, a desire to
learn, and a willingness to make
smart risks in the short term for
exponential long-term payoff.
We are all flawed humans,
doing what we think is best,
the best ways we know how.
It doesn't take a huge leap to
become innovative, it starts with
a small step. Because you can't
know what you don't know, the
first step is simply asking the right
questions. So what are the right
questions? And what is the next
step toward innovation? Start by
embracing and valuing new ways
of thinking, and avoid fear-based
decision making. Hire multi-
generational innovative thinkers,
support employees' personal
values with your company values,
and take small risks. You'll never
know where you'll end up un
-
less you experiment and support
inclusive values.
Innovation means you have to
see things from many perspec
-
tives. Just like we need diversity
in our communities to understand
different points of view, we need
innovators and traditionalists
to come together to combine
traditional business practices with
a fresh spin. In the end, we are
better and stronger because of our
differences.
CRYSTAL WIESE is the
Director of Marketing for
Factom, a blockchain
service company based in
Austin, Texas. Working within the
startup tech scene for the past 10 years,
she has become passionate about taking
great ideas and building a strong
comprehensive narrative. Graduating
from the Art Institute of Portland with a
degree in Design Management, Wiese
has always seen the value in creating
strong ties between the technical,
creative, and business.
Ideally, companies aren't about
surviving. They're about thriving by way
of moving forward and simply refusing
to stagnate. No one thinks they will
get ahead by remaining the same as
they always have. As the workforce
changes, so does the consumer.
With the adoption of cryptocurrency,
nontraditional lending, and on-demand
commerce, consumers are embracing
applications of evolving technology to
meet every need.